Folding chair



Patented Nov. 19, 1940 Unirse s'rnrrs PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to folding chairs of the class characterized by the inclusion, essentially, of front legs, side-bars pivoted there-to at their own front ends and at their rear ends affording rear legs, such side-bars forming parts of a seatstructure, arms pivoted at their front ends to the front legs above the seat-structure, and a back-structure pivoted to the rear ends of the arms and engaged at longitudinal guldeways of' the side-bars.

According to this invention I have produced a chair which, while strong and durable and readily capable of being changed from normal or seating state to folded state, when in folded state will exist in quite compact form and without presence of any leverage of any part on another and the possibility therefore of harmful strain being exerted in the act of folding or during shipping. The chair is further equipped with a certain means which functions when the chair is in use both to afford support to the back-structure and prevent possible complete collapse of the chair as by the occupant at that time exerting force tending to fold the chair. These advantages are evolved, further, without undue complication or expense of manufacture.

In the drawing,

Fig. l is a side elevation of the improved chair;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation;

Fig. 3 is a vertical front-to-rear section;

Fig. 4 shows the chair in side elevation, folded;

Fig. 5 is an isometric fragmentary view ofthe back;

Fig. 6 is a sectional detail on line 6 5, Fig. 1; and

Fig. 7 is a front-to-rear section of a detail.

The front-leg structure comprises a pair of legs I and a round rod 2 which penetrates the legs and is held against turning therein by dowels 3 (Fig. 6).

The seat-structure or seat member includes a pair of side-bars il, which desirably have their rear ends bent downwardly to provide back legs, and slats 5 resting on and secured to the two sidebars, as by screws or nails. The top edges of the side-bars are cut away, as at 6, so that the slats are inset therein, as shown in Figs. l and 3. The front ends of the side-bars are penetrated by and thus journaled on the rod 2, being each inward and next adjacent to a front leg. Each side-bar has at the inner side thereof and near and parallel with its top surface a guideway limited in length, being here a slot '1, which at 8 is developed into depending notches.

The arms 9 respectively `overlie the front legs and are pivoted thereto by hinges at I0. Since the lower and upper ends of the front legs are cut square and the legs in the normal or seating state of the chair stand perpendicular and the arrns in this example normally rest on the upper ends of the front legs, the arms extend horizontally.

The back-structure or back includes slats II rigidly secured together by a cross-strip l2 near their upper ends and arranged at the back thereof and a round rod I3 rigidly secured to the slats near their lower ends and at the front thereof; the securing in both instances may be by nailing or screws. The ends of rod I3 are reduced to form trunnions i3d. Attached to the two outermost slats are clips lli and these support a metal rod l5 whose ends project and are threaded. Said ends of the rod penetrate and are journaled at the rear ends of the arms, being equipped with nuts I outward of the arms. The trunnions i3d are received in the slots l.

When the chair is in normal state the rod I3 of. the back-structure has its trunnions engaged with either the notches 8 at the extreme forward ends of the slots or with the other two notches, according to the inclination of the back structure desired by the occupant. When the chair is to be folded the back structure is lifted to clear its rod I3 from the notches and turned on the rod l5 as a fulcrum and so that rod i3 retreats toward the rear ends of the slots, thus permitting the parts 9, I and d to fold. In such folding the construction is such that the front legs may assume exact coincidence with the side-bars as shown in Fig. 4. The back structure may assume such completely folded state that its slats I I all lie in faceto-face relation to the slats 5 of the seat. This is because, first, the slats 5 are inset in the sidebars and, second, because the slots 7 are spaced from as well as parallel with the plane of the top surfaces of slats 5 the same as the trunnions i3d. of rod I3 are spaced from the plane of the front face of the back-structure. In short, when the chair is completely folded the back structure isv entirely lacking in leverage which might become effective to cause strain or injury to the parts in shipping or handling.

As the chair is so far described the occupant might urge the seat structure forward, with forward tilting of the front legs and also of the back on its lower end as a fulcrum and consequent complete collapse of the chair while occupied. To prevent this and still permit the chair to be folded I provide an intercoupling means for said Y ward shifting thereon. Said means forms with said structure and back, however, an inter-connected normally collapsed system extensible to permit the back to be elevated out of confined relation to said structure so that it may be independently tilted forward preparatory to folding the chair to a state of complete collapse. In this example such means consists of a strut I1 here pivoted to a rod l5 of the back and having at its lower end a longitudinal slot, as shown in Fig. 4, receiving a rod I8 lconnecting the members 4 of the said structure, it thus serving to aid in supporting the back against backward pressure and the arms against downward pressure.`

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim is:

l. A folding chair including front legs, arms extending rearwardly from and pivoted to said legs on a horizontal axis, a seat structure below the arms `and vextending rearwardly from and pivoted to said legs on an axis parallel with the rst axis and having its rear end portion adapted to rest on the oor, a backpivoted to the arms on an axis also parallel with the rst axis and elevatory from and having its lower endv portion fulcrumed on said structure and while remaining so fulcrumed confined thereby against forward or rearward shifting thereon, an intercoupling means for said structure and back limiting the forward tilting movement of the back While the latter remains so fulcrurned and conned, said means consisting of a strut supported rearwardly of the back by said structure and normally supporting the back against rearward tilting while the latter remains so fulcrumed and confined and said structure, strut and back together forming a normally collapsed inter-connected system extensible to permit the back to be elevated out of confined relation to said structure.

2. A folding chair including front legs, arms extending rearwardly from and pivoted to said legs on a horizontal axis, a seat structure below the arms and extending rearwardly from and pivoted to said legs on an axis parallel with the first axis and having its rear end portion adapted to rest on the floor, a back pivoted to the arms on an axis also parallel with the rst axis and elevatory from and having its lower end portion fulcrumed on said structure andwhile remaining so f-ulcrumed confined therebyagainst forward or rearward shifting thereon, and an intercoupling means for said structure and back limiting the forward tilting movement of the back while the latter remains so fulcrumed and confined, said structure, means and back together forming a normally collapsed interconnected system extensible to permit the back to be elevated out of confined relation to said structure.

ARNOLD LUIKEN, 

